


The Start Of Something Great

by PhoenixFalling



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Brought this back from the dead, Christmas chapter, F/F, Fluff, I Tried, SuperCorp, a child? maybe? perhaps?, are yall ready for season 5 because I am not, domestic supercorp, fluff chronicle, fucking hell i'm a slut for supercorp, ignore me I didn't bother editing this bc i have exams, just in time for supercorp sunday, kara & lena adopt a dog, lena finds some kittens, lena is a sucker for kara's puppy dog eyes, they take a giant step, they're gonna be animal hoarders, they're perfect for each otheerrr
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2019-07-28
Packaged: 2019-08-29 14:48:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,255
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16746031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhoenixFalling/pseuds/PhoenixFalling
Summary: Against Lena's wishes, Kara eagerly adopts a massive white dog.Domestic Supercorp life + a doggo + kitties





	1. How do I say no to this?

**Author's Note:**

> For anyone wondering, I waste the majority of my life working at a shitty petstore. When I'm not working or doing schoolwork, the only joy I can find is by writing.  
> I need to find myself a girlfriend before I write myself to death.

“You can’t say no forever,” a finger jabbed her ribcage, distracting Lena’s focused stare on the road ahead. She glanced over to see her girlfriend peering at Lena with pleading sapphire puppy dog eyes; the very same expression that always got Kara into trouble. 

“What are we going to do with a dog?” Lena inquired, focusing her attention on the road ahead,”We can’t leave it at home alone all day.” She had no issue getting an animal, but a dog required so much work and attention.

“When I’m out as Supergirl he can keep you company. I can take him to Catco with me, I’m sure Nia would love to help me,” Kara replied instantly, as if she had every situation planed out. She had been dropping hints all week, like asking Lena her favorite breed, complaining that she never had a dog growing up. Ever since Lena mentioned the donation drive she started at L-Corp for the animal shelter, Kara had been relentless at pestering not only fellow Catco employees for donations, but DEO agents as well. 

“Kara… I don’t know,” Lena sighed as they turned into the street where the shelter resided. Deep down, she knew what this meant. This was a drastic step in their relationship, caring for a dog would test their abilities to parent a living creature. If they did succeed, than questions would start arising about establishing a family. That, or Kara just really wants a dog and she is just being dramatic. 

“You can’t resist me forever,” Kara crossed her arms and looked away, resuming an adorable pouting posture.

“Just watch me,” she planned on just dropping off the donations and leaving, hoping to escape before Kara discovered the archive of animals within its walls. Lena highly doubted that that tactic would work, but it was all she could try. 

“Why don’t you love me anymore?” The Kryptonian woman whined as Lena parked at the front of the shelter. 

National City’s animal shelter was just the run of the mill animal rescue, struggling to stay open and feed its massive stock of strays and abandoned animals. It was Kara’s interest in animals, particularly her story about her former cat Streaky, that persuaded Lena to get involved. It was not L-Corps money she invested into the shelter, but her own personal money, an early anniversary present for the woman she loved. She was not doing this for positive press, but the joy it brought Kara was reward enough.

“Kara, darling, I do. But we have so much going on at the moment,” they were both extremely busy with their extracurricular activities, hardly finding time to themselves as it was. Lena hopped out of the van, greeted immediately by the shelter manager.

“Ms. Luthor, what a pleasure to meet you. We are extremely grateful for your donations, it will surely be appreciated by all the animals,” he raised an eyebrow as Kara made a run for the shelter entrance. Any hope of leaving without an animal burnt away when she disappeared through the door without even a look over her shoulder.

“It was my pleasure, anything else I can do to help?” Lena asked, shaking her head in a mix of disappointment and amusement. She resisted the urge to tear off after Kara, not wanting to appear rude and ditch the kind shelter manager.

“The food and medical bills you covered is more than enough,” he motioned for the team of volunteers to start unloading the van,”I see you have other matters to attend to.”

“Please, if anything comes up, don’t be afraid to ask,” Lena nodded gratefully, shaking his outstretched hand. With urgency driving Lena to walk faster, she swung open the door to faint howls and barks of distressed dogs.

“Did you happen to see where a blond girl in glasses went?” She asked the receptionist. They did not look up from the stack of paperwork they were working on, simply pointing to the door on the left labeled ‘Dogs’. 

“Thank you,” Lena pushed open the door, the heartbreaking barks of desperate dogs overwhelming her senses as a maze of kennels outstretched in front of her. 

Her heart twisted at the sight of the dozens of miserable dogs, cowering as she walked by. Dogs of all shapes and sizes, each of their own personality were caged up as they waited to be adopted. Now she understood why Kara cared so much, why she wanted to help any and every animal possible. No living creature deserved to be locked up like this for their lives, it just was not right. 

She turned the corner to see her girlfriend crouch, hand pressed against the wire cageside. Kara was so entranced by something on the other side, she did not even know that Lena approached until she rested a hand on her shoulder. 

Kara’s determined sapphire eyes were shiny, on the verge of tears. There was no way on any earth that Kara would leave without this dog. 

“Just look at him, Lee,” Kara murmured, holding out her hand. Lena gave up any reservations and sat down on the floor, peering through the wire panel in curiosity.

She was expecting Kara to be fascinated with one of the many husky mixes, maybe even a German Shepherd mutt, not the snowy white pit bull mix that had pink scars scattered around his muzzle. His head was massive, especially for his scrawny body that showed similar scarring across his shoulders. He had the prettiest ice blue eyes that pierced her soul, an elated expression slapped across his silly face as if he knew he was going to be adopted.

“This is Arthur, he came in a couple months ago from a fighting ring. We have had a tough time adopting him out because he is such a handful, not to mention that he is deaf and has strict dietary needs,” volunteer said, pulling out a thin slipknot leash. 

He squeezed into the kennel, easily looping the leash around his thick neck. Arthur was wagging his tail so hard his entire body shook as the scrawny man lead him out of the kennel. The massive dog immediately plopped himself down in Kara's lap and started licking her face with a large black tongue.

Seeing the girl she loved so much so happy and giggling as Arthur slobbered all over Kara's gray sweatshirt warmed her heart. She would do anything to make Kara happy and if that meant adopting this adorable dog than why not? Lena had never owned a dog before, let alone a relationship where she could trust that the other person enough to do her share of work.

“You are going to be the death of me,” Lena stroked the dogs head as she saw the full extent of his pink scars. It was a miracle this dog was even alive, let alone how friendly he was,”We will adopt him.”

“Oh my Rao thank you!” Kara tackled her to the ground in a suffocating hug. To Lena’s disgust, she kissed her just to share the saliva of the dog. 

“Gross, get off!” Lena tried to shove her away but was joined by Arthur. 

“You already got what you wanted, just let me breathe,” Lena narrowed her eyes playfully at Kara, unable to resist a laugh as Arthur gave her a couple of quick licks.

Kara untangled herself from Lena as the volunteer led the dog away to the adoption office. Lena rubbed the excess slobber with a sleeve, adjusting her oversized hoodie with a couple tweaks.

“I mean it, thank you,” Kara said quietly, batting those convincing eyelashes,”I’ll make it up to you.” 

“You don’t need to, I think he’ll be a good fit into our little family,” Lena smiled, dark mint gaze soft with affection. She laced their fingers together, leading Kara away from the kennels before she fell in love with another dog.

“Our family,” Kara echoed, bringing a broad smile across her angelic features. Kara’s arm looped through hers, they walked side by side throughout the rest of the dog section until they found the adoption office. 

 

The paperwork itself did not take long, the manager fast tracked it as appreciation for the supplies. No questions had to be asked if the dog would be properly cared for, Kara was on the floor playing with Arthur the entire time and Lena certainly had the money for a proper veterinary for a deaf dog. With a couple of signatures and the adoption fee paid, Kara and Lena were out the door with their new dog in tow. 

“You better tell Alex to not call unless a monster is destroying National City, because we’re spending the rest of the day shopping and settling him in,” Lena commented as Kara lifted Arthur into the van. She plopped down in the passenger's seat, directions already loaded on to her phone for the nearest pet store. 

“Don’t worry, i won’t leave you two unless the world is ending” she replied, turning so she could see both Lena and Arthur. The dog had already popped his head between the two front seats, tongue rolled out of his side of his mouth with the silliest expression.

“You’re testing my limits today,” Lena sighed, her affectionate grin gave away any intentions that could be appear as short tempered.

“I wonder myself how you tolerate me,” Kara scratched Arthur’s head to distract him long enough for Lena to back out without her arm being completely slobbered,”It can’t just be my irresistible smile?”

“I do love staying up late worrying about your missions. At least now I’ll have someone to keep me company.”

“Lee, I always come back,” her Kryptonian partner rested a slightly wet hand on her shoulder,”And I always will.” 

“Yeah, I know,” Lena nodded. The familiar pang of worry stabbed at her gut, the same sickening feeling at the thought at Kara not returning. The heavy panting of Arthur reminded her to keep her turns slow and easy to avoid rocking the dog around the van. 

“Are you mad?” Kara hesitantly questioned,”About our new pet?”

“I could never be mad at you, Kar,” Lena knew that she would not be able to resist that goofy dog for long, she knew that she would end up loving it just as much as Kara already did. 

“Don’t tempt me, love,” she grinned as if Lena had challenged her to further push her buttons,”Oh! Turn right at the next light.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Lena grumbled, slowing rapidly to avoid missing the turn. 

“Do you like the name? We can change it.” 

“I think it fits him,” she reassured, pulling the van into a parking spot close to the store,”Like King Arthur, strong and courageous. That dog went through hell and back and is the happiest creature I’ve seen, with the exception of a certain reporter I know.”

“Good, so Arthur it is,” Kara agreed with the brightest smile she had ever seen. 

The women were greeted by a bubbly employee that was very eager to help them find everything required for a dog. The easiest part was finding the food and bedding, but everything else proved to be harder. After gratefully dismissing the employee, Lena and Kara ventured over to the wall of collars.

“I like this light gray collar, it highlights his eyes,” Lena was examining a selection of leather buckled collars.  
Kara knelt down, shielding whatever she was putting on Arthur from Lena’s view. She stood up, revealing a broad nylon rainbow collar that brought warmth to her chest,”Perfect.”

“Now the best part! Toys and bones!” Kara grinned, attaching a matching leash to the metal band and removed the slipknot leash given to them by the shelter. Arthur just stood there, joyful to just be loved. 

“Oh Rao,” Lena sighed, pushing the cart after Kara as she darted to the aisle stored the bones. Arthur was immediately glued to the bully sticks, picking himself out the largest stick possible. Kara took that as a sign, grabbing a handful of them and tossing them into the cart.

“How many of those does he need?” She examined some of the other types of bones, taking several antlers off the shelf.

“This is enough bones, but toys however…” Kara flashed a quick wink before weaving her way throughout the other customers with Arthur trotting happily beside her. 

“I swear…” Lena sighed, narrowing her eyes as some of the customers attempted to sneakily take a photo of the L-Corp CEO on a day out with her girlfriend. Never one can she have a peaceful day without someone invading her privacy. 

She raised her head proudly, avoiding the curious stares of the rude customers as Lena walked slowly through the isles in search of Kara. There she was standing on the last toy aisle, testing out toys with Arthur to see what he liked.  
Kara tossed a handful of toys into the cart, including several stuffed dinosaurs and a large rubber ball. Lena knew that this was just the start, that Kara would immediately order double this online throughout the next week as they got to know Arthur’s personality more.

“Come on you, before I have to buy the company,” Lena playfully jabbed Kara in the side, edging her to the register with the cart.

“Fine, I’ve tortured you enough shopping for our dog,” she staggered back a couple of steps, acting as if she was caused immense harm. 

“And who exactly is paying for this?” Lena said, feigning an annoyed tone as she slide the cart up to the next available register. The cashier immediately jumped to action, scanning each item with practiced efficiency. 

“I’ll pay you back,” Kara whispered, wrapping her arms around Lena’s waist and rested as they waited for the cashier to finish ringing them out.

“I’m sure you will,” Lena replied, swiping her card after the employee rambled off what they owe. 

 

The drive home went smoothly, Kara chatted away about all the tricks she was going to train Arthur to do. Lena took note to make an appointment with the vet to ensure Arthur’s health and to see if any other ailments tainted the pit bull mutt. 

Alex called as they turned into their apartment building, alerting Kara that she may be needed if a mission went sideways but that was unlikely. Kara excitedly asked her sister to stop by the apartment after work for a surprise. 

“Just make sure you both are dressed,” Alex groaned before hanging up.

“She’s never going to let that go, is she?” Lena chuckled, face growing a deep red with embarrassment as she recalled the incident where Alex let herself into Kara’s apartment early one morning; a mistake she will never make again. 

Kara tossed the hefty bag of dog food over her shoulder, arms lined with several bags. Lena grabbed the dog bed and the remainder of the bags before heading up to their apartment.

She opened the door to their penthouse, eagerly awaiting to curl into bed for an afternoon nap once Arthur got settled.

“No, no she will not,” Kara shook her head in agreement,”But this surprise is not going to be as scarring as the last time. I think she would like him.”

“How can she not?” Lena set the dog cushion by the base of their bed. Kara unhooked the leash, letting loose the monster of a dog. Arthur charged around the apartment, running in and out of each room, sliding across the floor to avoid crashing into a wall. 

“He needs a toy basket,” Kara commented, dumping the bags on to the table. Toys and treats covered most of the kitchen table. 

“Think you went overboard?” Lena raised an eyebrow as Arthur plopped himself down on the expensive velvet couch.  
Kara shook her head vigorously, snapping off tags and tossing the toys on the floor,”Nope.” 

“Do I need to remind you that this is a big responsibility?” Lena teased as Arthur jumped into action, zooming wildly around the living room.

“I single handedly tamed a Luthor, I think a dog would be no issue,” she responded nonchalantly, pulling Lena in for a kiss. Her heart swelled, almost bursting at the seams with joy. Everything started to fall into place, perhaps this was a step in the right direction. If they could take care of Arthur, than maybe she had a chance of starting a real family with the person she loved more than anything else in the world.


	2. A Slobbery Son

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex meets Arthur

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who care, my parents are going through a rough divorce. I haven't spoken to my father much since he moved, not that we have ever been that close, and I feel like it doesn't help that I'm bi.  
> Anyways. 
> 
> Ignore my troubles and here is your dose of cuteness

Three very loud precise knocks were quickly followed by a tired voice,”Open up love birds!”

“Does she have to call us that?” Lena grumbled, not finding the term very enduring.

“I think she deserves to call us whatever she wants after that little mishap,” Kara reminded with an adorable giggle,”Come in!”

“No! One of you open the door, I don’t trust either of you. I am armed and will shoot!” Alex warned. Something about her tone reassured that Director Danvers would definitely shoot her if she pulled any stunts.

“I’ll hold Arthur back if you get the door,” Kara suggested, wrapping the massive pit bull in a restrictive hold. Even with her extraterrestrial strength, the Girl of Steel struggled to keep a solid grip on the wiggly pup.

“Hey,” Lena opened the penthouse door to a woman with short reddish brown hair. She had two take out bags and based off the smell, was probably from Kara’s favorite chinese place.

“I’ll take those,” Lena heard a cursing from Kara and quickly took the bags from Alex’s hands. She got out of the way just in time to avoid being bulldozed by the very excited dog. Arthur careened straight into Alex, knocking her to the ground in a blur of white fur.

“Get your attack dog off of me!” Alex spluttered through gaps of giggling.  
Instinctively, Kara shouted from the kitchen in attempt to get Arthurs attention. Quickly realizing how useless verbal commands were, Lena gently grabbed his broad chest long enough for Alex to stand.

“This is your surprise? A dog?” Alex commented dryly, wiping her soggy hands on her DEO stealth suit.

“Don’t look at me, Kara is the one that wanted a dog,” Lena shrugged, releasing Arthur to jump all over the elder Danvers sister.

“She pulled those puppy eyes didn’t she?” She laughed as Arthur managed to land a disgusting slobbery kiss across her face.

“Have you ever tried saying no to Kara? At an animal shelter? With a deaf dog almost as cute as she is?” Lena glanced around the apartment she spent the past two hours puppy proofing. Arthur already broke a lamp and constantly crashed into obstacles until she moved the couch against the wall so he had a clear path to zoom from room to room.

“The fact that you made it out with a single dog is a miracle all on its own,” Alex pointed out, settling down at the kitchen table.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kara retorted. She set down a set of plates, one for each of them. She set down a fresh bowl of water for Arthur which he graciously sucked down, but not without leaving a trail of droplets all over the place.

“How many stray animals did you pick up off the street until Mom caved and let you keep that mean cat?” She teased, opening the take out containers. The delicious scent of fried rice and dumplings filled the apartment.

“Streaky just had a good sense of people,” she muffled behind a mouthful of potstickers.

Watching the two Danvers sister bicker and argue about the stupidest things reminded her of one of the few rare memories she had yet to force to the bottom of the innumerable amount of boxes she kept at her core.

 

_“And… Checkmate!” a younger man leaned back in the chair across from her. He closely examined the chess board until finally throwing up his hands in defeat._

_“I could have beaten you if I just…” He sighed, shaking his head in surrender._

_“_ _Just admit it, I’m the better chess player!” A much younger Lena squealed with excitement. The hours she wasted practicing and studying countless methods finally came to fruition._

_“I’m proud of you, chess is all about knowing your partner. You have to be twelve steps ahead, and somehow, you beat me. God job, kid,” Lex smiled enough to comfort her._

_“You try and finish the match quickly, hardly setting up a defense because you are so confident in an offense. Once I learned that all I had to do was figure out a dance of moving pieces around until you lost patience, game over,” Lena explained rapidly as she begun to reset the board._

_“You’ve got a good sense of people, I’ll give you that Lena.”_

 

“Le? You okay?” Kara noticed that she  
spaced out, no longer paying attention to the familial squabble. She interlaced their fingers together, giving a quick squeeze of comfort.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Never did ‘fine’ mean anything positive. A concerned frown plagued Kara's face for a second and Lena knew that this would not be the end of this conversation. Even after these wonderful months it was still hard for her to open up to Kara regardless of how much she wanted to.

“So tell me about this new dog? Why him? Don’t get me wrong, he’s cute, but not what I was expecting when Kara finally got a dog,” Alex questioned, picking up on the awkward tension that begun to boil.

“That’s all Kara,” she rubbed her thumb against the back of Kara’s warm hand. Even the most minimal contact with her steadied Lena, being the loving force that held her together through her frequent turmoils.

“Lena was so gracious to let me browse,” Kara could not help but smile mischievously with a little twinkle in her gentle seafoam gaze,”So I was roaming each aisle, knowing that most of the cuter ones would find homes. The huskies, shepherds, fuzzy little pups would easily capture the heart of families, but never the plain old mutts. Especially mutts that were explicitly of the pit bull family, like Arthur here. There were a set of blue pit siblings that I was drawn too, until I saw this pitiful boy…”

By pitiful boy, she meant the hundred pound dog that was currently shredding toilet paper in the living room. This dog had been going nonstop since they got home a couple of hours ago.

“He’s certainly… entertaining,” Alex piled on another serving of steaming rice onto her plate,”How are you handling this new addition?” She redirected her attention to Lena.

Lena prodded at the fried chicken, thinking carefully through her choice in words,”I will have to admit, he’s pretty damn cute. Another thing to handle, but he’ll be good company on your missions. I’ve got someone to share my panic attacks with.”

As if he knew he was being talked about, Arthur came trotting over to the table. His nose lifted into the hair, sniffing loudly at their laps. The tabletop was just above his eye level by mere centimeters, and good thing too, as he would easily gobble up the dinner if he could reach it.

“Speaking of, what do you think if I trained him as a protection dog?” Kara asked tenderly. She used her free hand to drop a piece of chicken on the ground which Arthur inhaled very quickly.

“For?” Lena responded defensively. She regretted her words as her girlfriend flinched at her snip, but nothing a quick kiss on the cheek could not fix,”I know you mean well but…”

“I can’t always be there, and I know you can protect yourself, but can it hurt to have a little extra protection? What if someone breaks in while I’m gone? Or if we’re attacked while walking him and I can’t risk revealing my identity?” The angelic extraterrestrial insisted adamantly.

“Just start with the basics,” Alex suggested,”One day at a time. Get used to living with this monster of a dog. Please tell me one thing, is that you’re not planning on bringing it to the DEO?”

Kara’s hesitation brought a scowl to her sisters face. Alex narrowed her eyes, stabbing the fork into a dumpling.  
Lena could not resist a laugh at Director Danver’s reluctance to allow Kara to bring Arthur to her pristine workplace,”If he gets to obliterate my offices, than you get to babysit him while she's in the field.”

“Please never reproduce,” Alex groaned,”I don't know if I can handle your abundance of pets and children running wild around the DEO while I'm trying to do my job.”

 _Oh god please not the children topic…_ Lena thought to herself. She needed to see how they handled a destructive dog before even touching the child topic.

“Don't worry, I will get him trained, you'll see!” Kara declared confidently.

“Kar, sweetheart, training a deaf dog isn't going to be easy,” Lena warned, cocking an eyebrow as Arthur settled himself down on the couch only to start chewing on a pillow.

“He's deaf?” Alex laughed, reassuring Lena that this was indeed not the smartest decision she had made. But it was a decision she would not back down from, it was merely going to be a challenging few months until they could get him trained. Hopefully.

“Arthur isn't gonna let his deafness impair him!” Kara grumbled, excusing herself from the table to sit on the couch next to the dog and his pile of stuffing.

Once Alex was confident that Kara was not eavesdropping and too preoccupied playing with the dog she started to speak in a hushed tone,“You know how reluctant I have been with you two together, but seeing all that your doing for her, so she can have a normal human life while-”

“As much as she can dating a Luthor,” Lena interjected quietly.

“Dating a woman,” Alex continued with her voice hardly loud enough for her to hear,”A very busy one at that. I know it's not the easiest with how the country is right now. And I have to admit, I'm impressed that you've made so much time for her.”

“What can I say? L-Corp takes up a lot of my time but whatever free time I have I try to spend with her, when she isn’t gallivanting off across the world stopping evil. She's everything to me. If getting a monster of a mutt to make late work nights or when I have to travel for business easier than why not?” She replied, smiling softly as Kara wrapped Arthur into a snug hug. The blond girl buried her head in to his chest, giggling loudly as he licked her.

“Thank you,” she said as she watched Kara affectionately tussle with Arthur.

“Excuse me?” She never once heard an actual thanks from Alex, not after all she has done for the DEO in the past years.

“I know I don’t say it enough, but thank you. I never thought I’d see the day where Kara settles down with someone and talk hopefully about the future. The way she talks about you and the life she wants to have with you… It’s so sweet it makes me nauseous,” Alex murmured. She had never heard the elder Danvers sister be so honest with her about how she felt about Lena and Kara’s relationship. Her disapproval stemmed from her fear that Lena would distract Kara from her duties as Supergirl, especially considering that dating a Luthor meant obligations to galas and business parties.

“My pleasure,” Lena replied simply. Sure, Lena and Alex butted heads on what they thought was best for Kara, but she admired the DEO director nonetheless.

Kara eyed the two women, aiming a plush ball in their direction. Holding Arthur back with one arm, she chucked the ball across the room, hitting Lena straight in the face. The ball rolled across the table and stopped inches away from Alex.

“Seriously? No apology?” Lena wiped away some of the excess slobber from her cheek. Arthur stumbled off of the couch; tripping over himself in an overly excited state to get to Alex’s feet where he sat staring up at her, begging for her to toss the ball.

“Nope!” Kara grinned mischievously, tilting her head slightly.

“Why you little…” Lena stood up from the chair, making slow deliberate strides from the kitchen to the living room.

“What are you going to do about it?” She teased, palms resting against the arm of the couch as she propped herself up. Messy waves of dirty blond hair fell over her chest as she stared up at Lena with challenging sky eyes.

“Hmmm, I don’t know,” Lena murmured, leaving a smidgen of space between their lips. Heavy paws slammed into  
her back, causing her to crash into Kara. The gorgeous Kryptonian back was pressed against the couch cushion with Lena on top of her, the only thing between them being the clothes on their backs.

“Hey,” Kara mumbled through a mouthful of hair,”I was trying to be cute.”

“Blame that crazy dog of yours,” Lena tugged the strands from her face, following closely with a light kiss on the lips.

“Get a room!” She could hear Alex’s annoyed grumbling from the kitchen but Lena simply did not care.

She leaned down once more to kiss her beautiful girl, that was until there was a massive wet snouth blocking her. Arthur apparently decided that no one else was going to get attention except himself so he climbed up on the couch, squeezing his large body on whatever little room was left over. She could feel his entire body wiggle and shake with enthusiasm as he used that damn tongue of his to lick both Lena and Kara.

“Oh Rao!” Kara grunted as she now had the weight of not just Lena on top of her, but Arthur.

“A little help here?” Lena called out, her voice muffled by the heavy panting of the dog.

“Yeah yeah,” Alex responded reluctantly, the sound of the chair scraping the ground telling her that she was coming to save then.

“Come on boy,” she grunted as she lifted him off the couch,”That's what you two get.”

“What? I can't enjoy the company of my own girlfriend?” Kara protested, her face flushed a deep red.  
Lena pushed herself off of Kara, resting against the plush arm of the couch. Kara sat up, only to make herself comfortable by leaning her back against Lena’s chest.

“I don't know if we're ever going go get a moment alone,” Lena said reluctantly,”But we have a couple of good friends to watch him for us, if Alex won’t be a good aunt.” She wrapped her arms around Kara’s waist just to invoke an eye roll from Alex.

She could hear Arthur loudly lapping up water, quickly followed by the pounding of his paws against the tile floor. He now had a dinosaur toy that was missing a leg in his powerful jaws, his head resting at Kara’s feet, bright blue eyes glancing from Kara to Alex.

Kara outstretched her arms, inviting the pit to come join them. Arthur seemed to understand what she was asking, so he wormed his way onto the couch. He curled up between Kara’s legs, laying his blocky head on her thigh.

“Oh god you two…” Alex groaned, sitting down on the dark red recliner,”Since I have to suffer through your PDA I get to decide what to watch.”

“Go for it,” Lena shrugged. She was too focused on the warmth of Kara curled against her. She felt… confident for once in her life.

Lena laid her head against Kara's shoulder, tightening her embrace. She would love to sit there forever, holding the love of her life.

Maybe this was the life for her? Maybe she should stop fighting it because it meant that she had a chance to settle down and it terrified her. People constantly left her, her mother, Lex, Lionel, but there was something special about Kara.


	3. promise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Lena's first Christmas together as a serious couple and they find the perfect gift for each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so this is a huge ass mess and had been rewritten twice so there may be some inconsitencies but I tried to make sure everything somewhat went together  
> it's as good as this chapters gonna get okay
> 
> will I ever like what I write? 
> 
> happy holidays/Hanukah/christmas/ spend time with those who you care about

Two. Two surprisingly fantastic months with their new and exciting life with Arthur. The first couple of weeks were the most difficult, figuring out their work schedules around the dog. He did poorly alone, destroying not one but two couches on separate occasions where they left him alone for more than three hours.

One day, Kara hurriedly dropped off Arthur one day because of a Supergirl emergency, Arthur made himself at home in her office. Since that day, Arthur spent most of his days with Lena and would accompany her everywhere, including meetings, lunches with potential clients, everywhere.

And than, the wonderful Christmas season approached out of nowhere. This would be their first Christmas together as a serious couple, considering they had moved to fast considering they had only been “officially” dating for three months. Neither Kara or Lena could pin down when they started dating since Kara did not seem to understand that the frequent dinner and movie dates were, in fact, dates.

Lena was determined to make their first Christmas and she got one thing that she was sure would make this holiday special. Kara wasn’t a materialistic person, the only thing she really spent money on was Arthur. So between buying unnecessary dog stuff and fancy cooking material, Lena was confident that Kara would be satisfied with her gifts.

“Are you sure it's okay if I go out Christmas shopping? I swear it’s just a couple of small things I have to pick up,” Kara disrupted her train of thought, laying her right hand across Lena’s stomach. She felt warmth against her back as her girlfriend moved closer.

“Kar, it’s literally Christmas Eve. How did you procrastinate all month?” she replied, putting her left hand over Kara’s,”I will take Arthur for his morning walk, maybe shop a little myself.” As much as she loved Kara, it was practically impossible to find the perfect gift for the perfect girl. She did the best she could though.

“I know, but I’ve just been so busy lately…” she trailed off, her chin resting between the dip where her shoulder and neck met,”I wish I had all the time in the world to spend with you.”

“It’s not your fault National City needs you. Just promise me, let some of the police do their jobs, okay? I want to spend some of my time off with you,” Lena smiled, Kara’s breath tickled the side of her neck.

“Of course. Unless the city faces a nuclear threat, we’ll be inseparable,” Kara hummed, planting a kiss on her cheek.

“You should probably get going if we’re picking up Eliza at the airport at twelve,” she sighed, although making no effort herself to get ready for the day.

“Oh Rao, don’t remind me,” Kara groaned, pressing her face into the mattress. The clicking of nails across the tile floor told Lena that Arthur was awake and probably ready to go on his walk.

“I think I’m more nervous about meeting your mother than you should be with presenting me as your girlfriend for the first time,” she turned to face Kara,”After all, Luthor’s aren’t known for their committed relationships.” 

“She would never judge you based off of your family, you know that, you’ve met her,” her voice was muffled as her face was pressed against the mattress, her dark blond hair curled loosely over her shoulders,”but you were in London last time Eliza was here. She has just never met you as Lena Luthor, my girlfriend.”

“I know, someone had to raise you to be the wonderful human you are now and I'm sure Eliza played a big part in that. But can you blame me? My last relationships have not gone too well, I just don’t want to fuck this one up,” Lena poked Kara’s side, inciting a quiet snort of laughter,”Something tells me though that since you have stuck through with me for all this time that I won’t ever be able to get rid of you.”

“Get rid of me? Never,” she mumbled, coming up for a gulp of air,”Do I have to get up though? I’m so comfortable…”

“Yes,” Arthur seemed to agree, as the entire bed shook as the massive dog jumped up to join them. He carelessly placed his giant paws on their legs and lower bodies as he made his way to their faces. With his entire body shaking excitedly, Arthur licked their faces with that disgustingly wet tongue of his.

“Okay, fine, I’m getting up,” Kara giggled, but that encouraged the dog to lick even faster. She nudged him over to the empty space on the left side of the bed so she could sit up.

“Good,” Lena grumbled her response, pulling the covers over her head.

“Hey, just because you don’t have to get up doesn't mean you won’t,” Kara gently whacked her in the head with a pillow as a form of incentive.

“Fine,” she pushed herself up, the blanket sliding down her back. The apartment was freezing, probably because she forgot to adjust the heating before they went to bed but in fairness, she was distracted by her lovely girlfriend.

“Did I thank you getting my mom a hotel room?” Kara slid out of bed, picking through the wardrobe for an outfit for the day. Arthur wasted no time in curling up in a tight ball where Kara was laying so he could curl up in her warmth before it faded.

“More than once, yes,” Lena shrugged, searching her own closet for some warm clothes that looked nice enough to hopefully impress Mrs. Danvers. They did have a spare room which Arthur’s toys and bones had taken over, but when Lena offered it the room for Eliza she turned it down. Only after frequent persisting did she finally cave into Lena’s offer to pay for a hotel.

“Good. Do we need anything else for dinner tomorrow?” Kara ran a comb through her hair. She was wearing a cute red plain shirt and black tights, a loose white scarf hanging around her neck.

“Maybe some of the popcorn bins?” Lena suggested, after all, they were hosting a small Christmas party, as in the Danvers girls, Nia, and Brainy.

“Sure, I’ll probably pick up some hot chocolate and wine too,” Kara agreed, giving Arthur a kiss on the top of his head before leaving the bedroom.

“Wine! Yes! I knew there was a reason I loved you,” she laughed, pulling a simple gray shirt over her head.

“Yeah yeah, love you too,” Kara called from the kitchen, her tone light with amusement.

Lena signaled to Arthur to follow and after a couple of seconds of hesitation, he took off and almost knocking Lena down in a spurt of energy. Kara worked really hard training Arthur, although while it was a rough going at first, once he started to understand the hand signals life with the energetic dog so much easier.

“How long are you going to be?” Lena asked, taking her leather jacket off the row of hooks by the door. She put the jacket on, adjusting the heavy leather so that it fit properly against her curvy figure.

“I have just a couple of things to pick up and I may stroll through some stores downtown. If you want, I can take the car and pick you up when I’m done,” Kara suggested, shoving a couple of granola bars in her pocket. The way she averted her gaze suggested that she was hiding something, but Lena was not concerned. Despite what Kara liked to believe, she could tell when she was hiding something. While Lena was extremely curious on why she was acting so suspicious, she assumed it had to do with Christmas and therefore forced aside her curiosity.

“I hope the airport doesn’t have problems with dogs,” she glanced at Arthur, who was muzzle deep in his food bowl.

“If they do they’ll have to fight through a Danvers and a Luthor, which I really don’t see them complaining,” Kara snagged the keys to Lena’s car, along with her wallet.

“Call me when you’re finished,” Lena stole a quick kiss on the cheek and flashed a quick smile, something stirring behind those brilliant blue eyes of hers before she left the apartment.

She was alone now with Arthur in an apartment she hardly recognized. It had the bare  
bones of the place she called home months before, colorful red and green Christmas decorations strung up every possible place. No, it was more, Kara had transformed this empty husk of a home into a place where she could be truly be happy.

“Alright, buddy, where would you like to go do today?” She was well aware he could not hear her, but talking to him helped calm her amounting nerves. Lena had never been a holiday person, but being with Kara had changed that. Their shared friends, even the ones she did not know as much were family to Kara and so they were family to Lena. Of course she was anxious, Lena wanted tonight to go well.

“National Park it is,” Lena said, making sure to tuck her wallet in one of the inner pockets of the jacket. There were a string of local business shops on the walk over to the park, so she was prepared just in case she spotted something for Kara. Perhaps this walk would clear her head and calm the bumbling of anxiety churning in her gut.

“Let’s go, Artie,” she clipped the leash onto his collar, grabbing the small bag of supplies that rested by the door. In it contained a water bottle, bowl, some treats, and some bags along with a couple of tennis balls.

He happily followed her out the apartment building, stopping immediately at the same tree just like any other morning. She let him take care of his business before continuing down the street in the direction of the park.

The walk was uneventful as usual, he occasionally stopped to sniff another dog or a plant. The frosty air and quiet sound of her boots tapping the concrete steadied rapidly pulsating heart. She stopped and stared through the windows of some of the shops, desperately hoping for an idea of something truly special for Kara.

The answer she was looking for unexpectedly came in the form of a faint meow. Arthur, while unable to hear it, seemed to pick up a scent and proceeded dragging her down a nearby alley. She examined the alley carefully, holding her breath as she poked through a pile of bags of garbage.

Arthur intensely sniffing the base of a rusted green garbage bin, tail wagging slowly. She kept as quiet as humanly possible, trying to pick up the sound of the kittens again. Worry twisting in her gut as she still could not find the origin of the meow, even looking underneath the garbage bin.

And than, another feeble meow that was hardly audible to the human ear. The only place left to check was inside of bin. She opened the bin, searching for any sign of movement amongst the soggy paper, plastic, and rotting food. Arthur jumped up on his hind legs, resting his front paws on the side of the steel side.

A slight rustling followed by a little squeak drew her attention to a plain black trash bag that had two distinct shapes, only one of which was moving.

“No…” Lena gasped, reaching into the trash bin. She pulled out the bag, gently resting it on the hard cement ground. Pulling out her pocket knife, Lena sliced the tight knot off. The trash bag collapsed, revealing two small kittens.

Sliding the leash handle down her wrist, she quickly picked up both kittens and held them close to her body. One of the kittens, a little fluffy gray kitten, was a lot more spirited than the much smaller orange-gray kitten that nestled itself in her hair.

“I guess our family got a little bigger,” Lena murmured, knowing that there was no possibly way she would leave these two helpless kittens out in the cold. Their eyes were definitely open, although they seemed clouded and unfocused. She knew there was a small pet store somewhere around the corner, so once she got there she would figure out how to get them home without Kara finding out.

As she hurriedly walked down the street with Arthur happily trotting at her heels, an idea sprang into her mind. A thought that would definitely make this Christmas special.

“Behave, buddy, and I’ll get you something too,” she said quietly to Arthur, mainly to reassure herself that he would be good.

The second she stepped into the store, an employee forcefully chirped up,”Hello ‘mam, is there anyway I can assist you?”

Lena cringed inwardly, not particularly in the mood to deal with an employee who definitely did not wanted to be at working on Christmas Eve,”Could you please point me in the direction of the cat section?”

The employees face lightened with relief that she was not going to be a pain in the ass costumer and eagerly showed her to the section of the store. Lena thanked her for her assistance and, after a little tug of encouragement for Arthur to follow along, headed down the aisle.

After securing the kittens in a carrier, she slid out her phone to see a couple of texts. None of which required for her to answer right now, so she dialed a number.

“Hey, Lena,” Alex said, sounded distracted.

“Are you busy?” Lena was now standing at the endless wall of cat food, having no clue where to even start. She had never owned a cat before and only knew the most basic of cat supplies; food, litter, and a litter box.

“Wrapping, so, technically,” she grunted on the other side of the phone line, sounding very annoyed at whatever she was attempting to wrap.

“Is there anyway you can meet me down at the pet store on 5th?” Lena gnawed on her tongue anxiously as she awaited for the elder Danvers to reply.

“I mean, sure, but why?” Alex sounded strained for a split second,”I assume now?”

“Well, I found some kittens. I certainly can’t turn them away, but we’re going to pick up Eliza soon and I want to surprise her…”

“So you’re asking me to take care of them for the night?” she summarized what Lena was trying to say.

“Yes?” Lena knew she sounded desperate but frankly did not care. She decided on a middle range kitten food would work until she did proper research and picked a random tub of litter as well a blue litter pan.

“Yeah, I don’t see why not. I will be there within twenty minutes or so,” Alex reluctantly agreed, hanging up the phone. Relief washed over her, a significant weight lifted off her back now that she had the beginnings of a plan.

“Don’t worry sweet babies, Aunt Alex will take good care of you for the night,” she crooned softly as one of the cats started meowing again,”I’ll get you a vet appointment as soon as possible, get you guys fixed up.”

She was extremely worried about the smallest kitten, but she was hoping some nice, warm food would keep it alive for the next couple of days. Just to be safe, she tossed some milk and cans of kitten moist into the basket, careful not to forget a bone for Arthur.

Lena staggered to the front of the store, basket filled with the basics that she thought would last a couple of days. She was checking out when the bell ringed as someone else came into the store.

“You two might as well build a barn on Clark’s land out in Smallville at this rate,” Alex commented, taking in full scoop of a slightly frazzled Lena Luthor. Arthur greeted her as he did with anyone else, with sticking his gigantic head between their legs to force them to pay attention to him.

“I wouldn’t go that far. It’s just two cats,” Lena said defensively, swiping her card. Now that Alex mentioned it, not repulsed by the idea of a buying a big old farm and getting it fixed up.

“And that is what future crazy cat ladies say,” Alex reminded with a laugh. She took a couple of the bags of supplies, rolling her eyes at seeing the abundance of kitten food she had purchased,”I fully expect that for a Valentine's Day gift for you to buy a massive 200 acre ranch, equipped with horses and livestock.”

“Haha, very funny,” Lena could not help but laugh,”Maybe not this Valentines Day.” She was interrupted by her phone ringing.

“Kara?” Alex asked, holding the door open for her to squeeze through with the kittens and Arthur.

“Who else?” Lena shrugged, taking hold of her phone and answered the call, putting her on speaker.

“I’m almost done, one last stop. Where are you?” Her tone was sharp with excitement.

“Oh, I’m uh,” she cast an alarming glance at Alex, brain completely blanking as she tried desperately to think of an excuse ,”At the, er, pet store on 5th. Thought I would get Arthur a bone for the drive.”

“Smooth,” Alex mouthed, trying to hold back a laugh. She popped open the trunk of her SUV, setting down the supplies. She did not forget about Arthur though, leaning down to give him some attention while Lena was talking to Kara.

“Don’t go anywhere than, I’ll be there soon,” the phone call clicked as Kara hung up.

“Where did she run off to anyways? Isn’t she supposed to pick up Mom from the airport?” Alex laughed as Arthur rolled onto the ground, belly exposed.

“Had to pick some small items, supposedly. Is she usually this late when it comes to Christmas?” Lena asked, watching as Alex rubbed his belly.

“Oh that’s right,” Alex answered a little too quickly causing Lena to narrow her eyes curiously. She tried to recover, but she knew her response was suspicious and there was no going back from it,”Well, no reason to lie about it. You’ll find out tomorrow.”

“What does that mean, Alex? What do you know?” Lena asked as she took the carrier from her. Alex avoided her question by hoping into her car with a worldless shrug.“Did you tell her about…” She trailed off, feeling as if Kara was over her shoulder at this moment. Lena sought out Alex’s help a couple of weeks ago with the idea of a special gift for Kara.

“What? Of course not. I just advised Kara on a little something,” Alex replied simply.

“If thats how it's going to be… I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” Lena grumbled, folding her arms across her chest.

“Don’t worry about it. And tomorrow will be fun. We’ll figure out a way to sneak the kittens in so it’ll be a surprise,” Alex replied, slamming the door shut. She started up the engine, urging the large DEO SUV into a crawl as she joined the light traffic.

“Tomorrow’s gonna be a fun day, huh buddy?” She sighed, watching the SUV disappear down a street. Christmas day was definitely going to interesting to say the least. There was something about Kara that stumped her, occasionally losing grip of her usual poised and professional manners to becoming a lovestruck idiot. So hosting a Christmas party with her family and friends is pushing her level of comfort.

Lena leaned against the brick wall of the building as she waited for Kara to arrive. The longer she waited, the more her anxiety started to rise as if a dam broke and released tidal wave of fear. Her concern was meeting the woman that raised Kara and what kind of impression Mrs. Danvers already had of her. Everyone always had an opinion on the Luthors, although Kara was the first person she had ever met that had not assumed so quickly she was just like the rest of her family. All Lena could do was hope that she learned not to judge from Eliza.

A young girl approached her, both hands being held by her parents. She stopped about a foot away, bright brown eyes focused on the ground. Her parents said some words of encouragement, nudging her closer to Lena.

Arthur stared up at Lena, body tense as he held himself back from tackling the child. Teaching the energetic dog to sit while being approached was the hardest thing, if he could have it his way Arthur would take down each person that approached. By some form of miracle, Kara had managed to get it through that thick head of his to wait for permission.

“Yes?” Lena asked. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the silver shine of a Tesla pull to the curb, the windows rolled down as the soundtrack of some musical she could not name played loudly from the speakers.

“Can I pet your dog?” The girl said shyly, reluctantly glancing up at her.

“Of course,” Lena could not help but smile, leaning down to keep a hand on Arthurs collar in case he broke his position and tried to drown the child in licks.

Arthur behaved much to Lena’s great surprise, sniffing the hand she offered first before inviting her into pet with a lick on the back of her hand. She surprised by the jolt of warmth that pulsed from her heart as the young girl’s face lit up with happiness.

“What’s his name?” She inquired, the same question asked by dozens of people before. Her parents joined her side, giving Arthur some ‘needed’ attention.

“This is Arthur, he’s deaf,” Lena replied, cutting out what would likely come up in further conversation.

“Aww really? What kind of dog is he?” The father asked, scratching the massive pup right behind his floppy ears.

“My girlfriend thinks that he’s a pit mastiff mix,” Yeah, her girlfriend. Would she ever get used to referring to Kara as her girlfriend? No. Probably not, and that was perfectly alright with Lena.

“We adopted him from the shelter,” Lena added, anticipating that that would be the next follow up question. People always asked the exact same questions when it came to Arthur, that Kara was a lot more enthusiastic and eager to answer. Lena on the other hand was ready to get the conversation over with and carry on with their walks.

“Well he is just precious!” The girl giggled as Arthur snuck in a big sloppy kiss when she stopped petting him.

“Try living with him,” she said, sneaking a glance at the car. Kara was watching with the softest expression, as if she had never seen Arthur interact with a kid before.

“Aw, he can’t be that bad,” The mother commented with a smile as his tail rapidly thumped against the ground.

“Honestly, he’s been a delight,” Lena stroked the top of his head fondly,”He’s broken a couple lamps, chewed through the wall more than once, but when he finally settled down he’s been such a great dog.”

“Aw, well that’s good. Thank you for letting us pet him,” he said, straightening back up. The daughter needed a little persuasion to guide her away from the dog.

“It’s no problem at all,” she nodded. Lena waited for a couple seconds as the family walked away before she approached the car.

“Hey stranger,” Kara grinned.

“Stranger?” Lena opened the door, holding it open for Arthur to charge into the back seat. After hooking the seat belt to his collar, she slid in the passenger seat.

“Almost didn’t recognize you, smiling and engaging in conversation with other people,” She kicked the car into gear, pulling into the lane.

“Hey, I can interact with people…” Lena huffed,””Just not willingly.”

“That kid was cute,” Kara commented casually.

“Yeah,” she replied slowly. Where they already at this point where they discussed their stance on kids?

“So I think there is something we should talk about.”

Apparently she thought now, on the way to pick up her mother, was a fantastic time to bring up this topic. Probably because Lena couldn’t escape,”I suppose …”

“I don’t know if you know this or not, but Alex split from her ex-fiancé because of their differential stance on kids. I know we were both on the fence when we kind of talked about it months ago-but- I just don’t want to lose you like she lost Maggie,” Kara said, selecting her words carefully. “I love you, and after seeing that we were somehow able to handle Arthur, I think now is the best time to talk about this. Before we get too serious.”

“No, I understand, I figured this was coming,” Lena shrugged, tossing the bone to the back for Arthur. “I honestly don’t know Kara, we both lead crazy lives. A baby is so different than a dog.”

“Oh most definitely, but I feel like we could do it. I could work from home, drop it off with you if there any emergencies, its-just- I- When think about my future, I released how much I want you in it, whether or not we have a family…” Kara had definitely been thinking about their future for a stretch of time, this wasn’t just something to talk for the drive to the airport,”I want kids, Lee. Someday.”

Looking into the future was something she generally feared to do, because that meant there was always potential to screw shit up. Looking at Kara, who was tight faced and trying to focus on the road ahead. Something troubled that adorable face of hers, her mind clearly not focused on driving.

Thinking ahead, did she invision a child? Did that future have a child chasing Arthur around? Maybe a toddler sound asleep on the couch, cuddling one of the cats? Late work nights only made longer by a child awake with nightmares, begging to sleep with their mothers…

Why did the idea of waking up early to get kids ready for school sound so welcoming? She hardly had enough time to sleep as it is.

“Lee?” Kara asked quietly.

“As much as it may surprise you, and myself for that matter, I can’t help but like the idea of a family that includes kids and our abundance of animals,” Lena laid a hand on her shoulder, a pathetic lovestruck smile spreading across her face. Kara’s face brightened as she snapped out of her quiet mood and resumed her usual delightful self.

“Are you serious?” Kara squealed, almost driving off the road. She was clearly very excited at the idea of raising a family.

“Yes, of course there will be kinks that we need to work out, especially with your two jobs and mine, but that will be a concern for another time,” she reminded her. Now that they agreed on the shared idea of raising children, there was one more pressing matter. “Look, as much as I love you, I’m not very fond of the idea of carrying a child for 9 months and I like the idea of you carrying one around even less.”

“A surrogate?” Kara suggested, although she did seem too interested in the idea herself.

“I do not care about passing on my genes, unless you really want a child from both of us. Technology has come a long way dear, but not sure how they would operate on a Kryptonian, so, there is that issue,” she said, hoping that she did not come off cold. She had no desire to prolong the Luthor blood any longer, that she should be the last heir to the Luthor name.

“Or we could simply adopt. We won't have to deal with carrying around a child for months on end or with the sickness and all of that fun stuff that comes with pregnancy. That way we could both focus on our job while searching for the right match,” Kara suggested, glancing at Lena for a split second before turning her attention back to the word. Their eyes met for just long enough for her to see that the endless crystal pools of blue were illuminated with hope and adoration.

“I like that idea,” Lena agreed, turning her attention to her pinging phone. She had gotten several messages from Alex.

**Alex (11:37am): Home and settled in. They really are too cute!! Kara will love them**   
**Alex (11:39am) They really liked the milk and moist. The runt ate an entire can!**

Attached were several photos of the kittens curled up on a pile of blankets. The size difference was more apparent as they were laying side by side, the gray kitten much fuzzier and bigger than the orange-gray baby. Their faces were stained a light brown from the milk.

**Lena (11:42am) That's great to hear! Thank you again. I owe you one.**   
**Alex (11:45am) Don't worry about it, you making Kara happy is good enough for me. See you tomorrow morning!**

“Who ya texting?” Kara pestered, guiding the car into the line where the sign dictated traffic for the airport to go. While moving, the road leading to the airport was packed with people coming and leaving National City last minute.

“Your sister, she's helping me with some L-Corp stuff,” Lena shrugged. A little white lie like this didn't hurt anyone.

“Sure she is,” she pumped the brake a little too hard as some jerk in a gigantic four door black truck cut them off. Arthur jerked forward, his seat belt restraining him safely to the back seat.

“Asshole,” Lena grumbled, her inner drivers rage surfacing. She had gotten so aggressive with her road rage that Kara insisted on driving -or flying- anytime they needed to go anywhere.

“Lee, sweetheart, it is the holidays,” Kara rolled her eyes, blindly reaching an arm behind her to pat Arthur.

“Assholes don’t stop being assholes just because of a holiday,” she huffed, narrowing her eyes at the truck, hoping the driver could feel her annoyance.

“Are you grumpy because you're nervous? I swear Mom's only heard positive things about you,” Kara teased. The car slowed to a halt, the line entering the parking deck was stalled.

“Excuse you, I’m fine,” Lena snorted, her eyes focused on the license plate on the car in front. Her heart, in fact, was pounding against her chest so much so she was sure Kara could hear without her super hearing. Her palms grew clammy as the car crawled forwards, the National City Airport coming into view.

“You’re heartbeat says otherwise,” she murmured. “Why are you so anxious?”

“What if she thinks I’m bad for you?”

“I’m not going to lie, I’m sure Mom will have her concerns about our relationship. None of those concerns, I promise you, are because of your name. If anything she’s going to be mad I’ve lied to her about the “casual” relationship I’ve been in,” Kara laughed, her tone faltering as she too became nervous,”Because we have certainly passed the casual stage pretty quickly.”

“Oh no, you are supposed to be the strong one,” Lena groaned, rubbing her temple with her index and thumb,”I told you to just bite the bullet the day you moved in, instead you avoided it,” Lena pointed out. After driving through an endless maze of the car deck, Kara pulled into a tight parking spot.

“Well, months of poor timing led to this unavoidable moment, are you ready?” Kara wasn’t just asking Lena though, she was asking herself.

“As I’ll ever be.”

Lena and Kara, along with Arthur happily trotting at their heels, walked through the parking garage at a hurried pace. Eliza’s plan had landed a little early, so she texted Kara that she would probably be waiting by the baggage claim by the time they got through the airport.

To Lena’s relief, no one batted an eye at the gigantic white dog with his slick tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. He clearly was not aggressive but the negative stigma against anything that looked remotely like a pit bull surrounded even the most sweetest of boys. They entered the bustling airport, dozens of people hurrying to get through security rushed by. Family members conversed, hugging and some even crying after reuniting with loved ones for the first time in awhile.

By the time the two women made it to the baggage claim, Eliza was nowhere in sight. Kara checked her phone, eyes clouded with worry,”Do you think she’s lost? It’s pretty chaotic…”

“I’m sure she’s fine. Take a deep breath Kara, the airmat gets clogged up all the time,” Lena reached down, tangling their fingers together. She gave her a comfortable squeeze, flashing a reassuring smile when she glanced at her with shadowed sky eyes.

“Yeah, I know. It’s just the anxiety getting the best of me…” Kara smiled genuinely, appreciating her simple gesture. They stood off to the side, hugging the wall to avoid getting in the way of the busy travelers. Arthur wagged his tail at every passing person, only a handful stopping for half a second to give him a couple of rapid pats on the head.

“Well your anxiety is over,” Lena murmured, dipping her head to the insane bustle of people. A middle-aged blond woman gracefully maneuvered her way through the crowd, a simple black bag slung over her back.

“I think you mean dramatically increasing by the second,” Kara said quietly, dragging Lena and Arthur along to meet Eliza half way.

“Kara! It’s great to see you!” Kara hung on to Lena’s hand as her mother gave her a quick hug. “It’s lovely to see you again, Lena.” Her eyes skimmed between the two women, a smile blooming at the sight of their intertwined hands. Arthur decided now would be the best time to introduce himself by coming between Lena and Kara, plopping himself down right at Eliza’s feet.

“Is this the famous Arthur?” Eliza did not seem to know to even ask as it was more of an open question.

“The one and only,” Kara messed with his floppy ears.

“Turns out all that hard work was worth it, he's such a good boy. A behaved, gentleman at that,” Eliza got down to his level, encouraging Arthur to lick her even more.

“It took some time, some furniture had to suffer until we got a handle on him,” Lena sighed, unable to resist a grin as Kara leaned down with her mother and Arthur licked her across her entire face.

“How does he do home alone when you two are at work?” Mrs. Danvers inquired.

“Arthur is usually with me,” she confessed, tucking a strand of loose black hair behind her ear,”No one can tell the woman who owns the building that I can't bring my dog, so.”

“I can imagine that is hard to argue with you, Miss Luthor,” Eliza said, standing up with a pained wince.

“I don't know, she never puts up a fight with me,” Kara said proudly, using the hand laced with Lena's as an anchor to pull herself up.

“Because you just do it anyways, regardless of what I say,” Lena lovingly bumped her shoulder.

“Alex was right about one thing, you two are great together. I’m glad I can finally meet you as my daughters girlfriend rather than the woman she has talked about obsessively since the day she met you,” Eliza smiled kindly at Lena.

“What else did she say?” Kara said, concerned on what exactly her sister said regarding their relationship. Lena was also a little worried, she knew how close the Danvers sisters were so she had no doubt that they discussed Kara’s private life, but how much of that got back to their mother?

“Nothing to worry about sweetheart,” she reassured Kara.

“Can’t say I’m surprised you two are moving so fast. After hearing Kara talk about you rather fondly -more than I would expect when talking about a best friend- for two years I figured something would happen. And it apparently did,” Eliza held the door open for Kara and Lena to slide through.

“So you’ve been obsessed with me for two years?” Lena affectionately bumped Kara with her shoulder.

“Didn’t you buy Catco for me? Filled my entire office with flowers? And you accuse me of obsession?” Kara gasped dramatically, raising their shared hands to her mouth in efforts to appear flabbergasted.

Eliza laughed, finding their flirting to be somewhat enduring, a welcoming contrast to Alex’s usual response of scoffing and rolling her eyes,”You two really are something special.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kara asked defensively, tightening her grip on Arthur’s leash as they stopped at the crosswalk momentarily.

“I’m sure it hasn’t been easy, balancing such a strong relationship between a CEO and a super hero reporter. Sometimes thinking of Kara and Alex keeps me up at night with worry, that can’t be anything different you, Lena,” Eliza replied calmly.

“We make it work,” she nodded, kissing Kara on the cheek seconds before the crosslight flickered green. Her skin instantly turned a flustered red, as if embarrassed of showing public affection in front of her mother.

“We do.”

 

** ** ** * *** * * ** * **** * ** * *** * ** ** ** * *** * * ** * **** * ** * *** *

Lena awoke the next morning with a start as something heavy jumped on top of her. At first she thought it was Arthur, but than a hand brushed aside the tangled black mess of hair out of her face. Radiant seafoam eyes stared down at her, merely inches away from her face.

“Just let me sleep in for a couple more minutes…” Lena protested, trying to move her arms from underneath the blanket to push Kara off. However, her extraterrestrial girlfriend had her pinned down against the mattress completely immobile.

“Oh, hush,” she brushed her lips against Lena’s for a fleeting second before murmuring,”Merry Christmas.”

“You don’t even celebrate the Christian version of Christmas,” Lena grumbled, glaring  
at her lovely girlfriend through narrowed stormy green eyes.

She had clearly been up for awhile, her hair freshly washed. The delightful scent of lavender coming from those slight dirty blond curls, her soft lips tasting of fresh hazel coffee.

“Neither do you,” Kara rested her head on Lena’s chest, an intoxicating smile spreading across her face,”But I sure do look forwards to spending the day with the most important people in our lives. The exact people that will be here in thirty minutes or so.”

“Jesus Kara! Let me get ready!” Lena squirmed, but to no avail, she was stuck.

“You’re welcome, I could have woken you up at four in the morning,” Kara rolled over to the side, freeing Lena from her suffocating grasp. She was already dressed in a red and blue christmas sweater with little white reindeers and snowflakes as well as a simple pair of white leggings.

“I literally told you to wake me up when you get up,” Lena mentioned, tossing aside the comforter over Kara and climbed out of bed.

“It’s going to be a chaotic day, I thought you might as well get some sleep while you can, I can’t have a grumpy girlfriend in front of guests,” Kara chirped. The mattress creaked as she jumped off, rocketing to the kitchen like a child on Christmas morning which apparently she was. Lena had seen Kara this excited only twice, when she asked her to move in with her and when she agreed to adopt Arthur.

Not only was she expanding their family, but it was the second ‘special’ gift that she had been worrying about for the past couple of weeks. Even with Alex’s help, she was still terrified at the thought of having to give it to Kara in front of her family.

At least the apartment smelled delightfully sweet of cookies and pie, with a faint whiff of turkey stirring her stomach to rumble with hunger. If it was up to her, she would have just thrown on a hoodie and called it a day. But she knew that Kara would want to take (a lot ) of pictures and videos throughout the entire day so she might as put effort in her appearance.

Lena spent the next twenty minutes trying to pick out a fitting outfit for the day, eventually deciding on a boring black low cut shirt and a pair of jeans. If Kara protested that she wasn’t ‘Christmassy’ enough, she could toss on a red scarf to satisfy her aesthetic desire.

She snagged her phone off the nightstand, greeted by a barrage of texts from Alex. Lena left the room, eager for the next two hours to be over so she would quite worrying.

 

**Alex (9:25am): I just picked up my Mom from the hotel.**   
**Alex (9:34am): Are you up yet?**   
**Alex (9:41am): We’re almost here. Eliza’s going to distract Lena so you can sneak the kittens in.**   
**Alex (9:50am): Get ready, pulling up to the building now.**

“They’re almost here,” Lena commented, shoving her phone in her back pocket. There was no use to reply when they were minutes away from walking through the door

“Great!” Kara said, pulling out a steaming hot pie from the oven.

She examined the living room which now had red and green lights strung up, the base of the christmas tree having doubled in gifts overnight,”Answer me sincerely, how much of these are for Arthur?”

“Maybe half?” She shrugged, setting down a bowl of dog food that was topped with boiled chicken.

“That’s what I thought,” Lena shook her head as Arthur tripped over a box on his gallop through the apartment to get to his breakfast.

A couple of rabid knocks on the door were quickly followed by Eliza calling through the door,”We’re here!”

Luckily, Arthur was too preoccupied by his food to charge the door. Lena sharply inhaled, the feeling of nauseous spiking as Kara opened the door. Eliza busted in, arms lined with gift bags as she immediately asked Kara for her help with the gifts.

Now that her girlfriend was successfully distracted, Lena ducked into the hallway where Alex was hiding behind the corner with the kittens and their supplies. Glancing over her shoulder to make sure Kara wasn’t paying attention, Lena and Alex darted into the apartment, sliding straight into the master bathroom. They quickly set up the kittens, letting them loose to wreak havoc on her previously clean bathroom.

“Merry Christmas!” Alex said cheerfully, drawing a surprised Kara into a hug as they exited the master bedroom. Kara glanced at Lena, clearly confused on why they snuck away the second Alex got into the apartment.

Lena shrugged, pushing past her to sit down on a large plush pillow on the ground at the base of the couch. The initial plan was to open gifts with the Danvers family by 12 when Nia Nall and Brainy came for a grand Christmas dinner.

Alex sat down on the edge of the recliner, ready to get started. She snagged a warm sugar cookie from the plate of sweets on the coffee table.

Kara quickly called dibs on ‘Santa’, not that anyone else was jumping at the opportunity to hand out presents. Her joy was intoxicating, Lena was surprised to see Alex more open and relaxed than usual. Than again, she had rarely seen her in such a warm and generally happy environment like that Kara created through her mood and decorations.

Just as they started opening the first round of gifts, Arthur made it clear he would not he ignored amongst all of the fun of opening gifts. He started shredding some stray wrapping paper until Kara handed a carefully wrapped bone.

Now that Arthur was distracted for a couple of minutes, they could finally start. The first couple of gifts ranged from some nice shirts for both Alex and Kara (although she highly doubted that Alex would wear the feminine styled light pink shirt gifted by Eliza) to some jewelry for Eliza and a fancy gourmet mixer for Kara.

It was obvious Alex had been clueless on what to get Lena since she was not a very materialistic person, so probably with some help with Kara she settled on some very basic, but still practical gifts. The first was a custom blanket, patched with pictures of Kara and Lena together, most of them with Arthur.

Arthur had accumulated quite a collection of toys and bones from the entire Danvers family whereas Lena went for a more practical approach and got him (as well as Kara) a video system where they could link up their phones and check up on him if they were ever away.

The next hour and a half zoomed by, timing flying so much quicker than Lena anticipated. After the initial awkward tension dissipated, the environment became fun. The Danvers sisters were teasing each other, Eliza was very interested in learning more about Lena. She asked countless questions, respectfully not pressing her when Lena struggled to respond to a sensitive inquire.

Alex lifted her head, making eye contact with her. There were only a handful of smaller gifts left, that and the kittens she was procrastinating bringing out.

“Don’t you have something else stashed away?” Alex said, shifting her gaze from Lena to Kara.

 _‘So she’s got something hiding too? It better not be anymore animals,’_ Lena thought, standing up with a strained sign. Her lower torso was stiff from sitting in one position for so long. She carefully made her way through the shredded paper that covered the living room floor. Before entering in the bathroom, Lena opened her closet door and pulled down a tattered old shoebox. In the box was a random assortment of mementos from her life, some old pictures and little pins and other knick knacks.

There was a newer rectangular velvet blue box sitting on top of a stack of loose pieces of paper that Lena took out, putting the shoebox back to its original place. She opened the bathroom door to see both kittens fast asleep, shredded toilet paper everywhere. Lena removed a shiny gold necklace carefully looping around the neck of the larger gray kit.

Heart beating hard as she anxiously anticipated Kara’s reaction, Lena called out from the bedroom door,”Kara, close your eyes.”

Cradling the kittens to her chest, Lena trudged through Arthur’s path of destruction. He lifted his head, momentarily interested at what she was bringing out until he went back to his giant cow bone. She sat down in front of Kara and with an encouraged nod from Alex, took a deep breathe and placed the kittens in her lap.

Kara’s eyes flashed open, her eyes lighting up as the runt started to climb up her shirt,”Two? Two precious, adorable kittens?” She picked up the gray kitten, curiously lifting the necklace from its neck,”What’s this?”  
Kara held the chain up to her face, cuddling one of the kittens with her free hand. Weighing down the necklace was a rose gold ring, small diamonds lining an infinity symbol with a deep sapphire blue stone in the middle.

“There is an inscription on the inside,” Lena murmured, the tightness in her chest finally relaxed as she saw how elated her girlfriend was. Initially she thought that the gifted of a promise ring would be too much considering how little time they had been in a relationship, but after all they had gone through together, why not?

 _“To my hero, love L.L.”_ Kara said, a smile so soft it would melt the heart of the most cruelest of men. She handed both kittens to Eliza, who appeared very touched by Lena’s momentous gift. Kara reached behind her back, fumbling with a small box of her own.

“That way I’m always with you, you can wear it as a necklace and hide it underneath your suit. It’s a promise ring, a reminder that no matter where we are in the world, I’ll always be there waiting,” the Kryptonians shining sky eyes started to water.

The kittens were rather unplanned, I found them yesterday, tied up in a trash bag and tossed away. I certainly couldn’t just leave them there, and since Arthur’s been such a delight I thought hey, why not…” Lena started to ramble on until she was shut up by a passionate kiss. She had not been anticipating such force and tumbled backward, Kara falling on top of her.

Now in a state of giggles, the adorable girl kissed her again before reluctantly pushing herself off of Lena. Kara slid the thin chain over her head, the ring resting just below her collarbone. She handed Lena a basic black box with a bright green bow on top, her usual confident smile broadening as she watched Lena open it.

Immediately a goofy smile plastered on her face as she removed a ring that looked eerily similar to the one she gave Kara except the band was black with white crystals, the largest gemstone a rich forest green. Light shined on something written on the inside, reading out loud,” _My one true kryptonite, yours, k.d._ ” She slid it down her ring finger, pleasantly surprised to find that it fit perfectly.

Lena wrapped her arms around Kara, a calming wave of peace flushed her system as she looked around at the Danvers women. Since Kara had moved in with her, her boring old apartment slowly turned into a home. She seemed to bring a new warmth, a sense of welcome that could only be described as homely. Maybe it wasn’t just the colorful apartment, but her confidence in their relationship growing and solidifying into a more domestic life. They were on the path of a long future together, and these promise rings only confirmed so.

“Damn Alex, was this your master plan all along?” Lena asked. Both of the women presenting each other a promise ring was too much of a coincidence. 

“I merely guided you, both of you came to me with a similar enough idea. Something that the other could look at in hard times and be reminded of the love you share. I may have suggested a couple things, like the style, but the inscriptions and gems were your own ideas,” Alex smiled smugly, seemingly very proud of herself.

“It’s great to see my girls happy,” Eliza smiled kindly at Lena. She took at as paternal approval, not that she needed to ask for permission anyways. After all, they didn’t exchange engagement rings, only a promise that the future would hold far more than the present could see. “You’ll find someone, Alex, I’m sure that Lena knows a few women at her office.”

Alex groaned, hiding her flushed face with a pillow,”I don’t need help finding anyone. I’ve been on dates!” She muffled voice was sharp and defensive.

“Don’t worry Alex, I can keep my ear out for woman that seems to be of your type. I did hear a rumor though, that a Samantha Aries maybe coming back to town,” Lena smirked, that was until the pillow she was clutching came barreling towards her face. She ducked, only for the pillow to hit Kara in the chest.

“I remember Sam, she was a such sweet girl. Whatever did happen to her?” Eliza asked. Alex, Kara, and Lena went quiet for a minute, none of them wanting to delve into the real reason why she disappeared.

“She had some family drama come around, left town to get away from it,” Kara said, only manipulating the truth a little,”But it’s great to hear she maybe coming back.”

“Sam is considering running Catco for me since James’ abrupt departure for Metropolis. But I’m sure she’ll be happy to know she’s still got some friends,” Lena added, unable to resist a wink directed at Alex. That only made her blush harder, her face now a beet red.

“You two are really out to end me,” she grumbled, still flustered.

“We just want you to be happy,” Kara fiddled with the necklace, twisting the ring around the chain. A slight smile touched her lips, bringing out those adorable little dimples of hers.

“Don’t you have guests coming in about fifteen or so minutes?” Eliza asked, examining the new digital watch on her wrist,”This apartment is a mess.”

The kittens were having a field day in mounds of wrapping paper, Arthur noticed and started to play with them. He would toss a crumpled up ball to them, the adorable little kittens batting it back to them.

“If you guys want to put your gifts in Arthurs room, I can clean up,” Kara said, looking around the apartment. Their home really was a chaotic mess, string, bows, shredded paper everywhere. The disaster was only being made worse by the animals.

Eliza and Alex put most of their new belongings in the spare room, although Alex attached the new leather gun holster to her belt, clearly not wanting to separate from her new gun.

Lena worked on putting away her and Kara’s gifts in their bedroom to be sorted through later. Anything fragile was put safely away in a drawer since between the kittens and Arthur, nothing was safe.

She was very thankful for Kara's superspeed because by the time most of the items had been put away (with the exception of Arthur's toys) the apartment was clean. She left a couple of shreds of paper for the animals to play with.

“They need names,” Kara said, crushing down a black garbage bag of trash.

“I think it would be cool to stick to the Camelot them,” Lena replied. She was busy checking around the apartment to make sure that Kara had not missed anything in her initial swift cleanup.

“The gray one is a male, the smaller one is female,” Alex said as she shut the door to Arthur's room behind her.

“Guinevere for the female, obviously, and maybe Lancelot for the boy?” Kara suggested. She started to set the table, expecting for Brainy and Nia to arrive at any minute.

“Gwen and Lance for short,” Lena confirmed, watching as the kittens started to explore the rest of the apartment. Arthur towered above them, following them as if he was a guard dog.

“So when do I get grandchildren? I would like to be a grandmother someday, eventually,” Eliza gently teased, triggering the three younger women to grow flustered despite the question being directed to Kara and Lena.

“Maybe someday,” Kara managed to say, carefully taking the ham out of the oven.

“Take your time, I was only joking. Don't feel pressured to have kids because of me,” she reassured, setting down the silverware.

It would be a tight squeeze but they should be able to fit the food and six people although that should was a very hesitant ‘should’. Kara was very proud of her cooking skills that she had been working hard to perfect over the past month whenever she had the chance, usually cooking if she was not protecting National City. Although her opinion may be biased, Lena genuinely thought that Kara was a great cook.

A single knock vibrated through the wooden doorframe. Brainy was here, more than likely accompanied by Nia. The two had gotten suspiciously close, but Brainy refused to do anything because of fear of screwing up the future.

Kara got a stronghold of Arthur, Lance and Gwen were too fascinated by the ribbon Eliza danced across the floor. Alex opened the door, inviting in their friends into the apartment.

“Merry Christmas!” Kara said in a singsong voice, letting Arthur sniff Brainy as she greeted Nia with an embrace.

“And a Happy Holidays to you,” Brainy replied, picking up Lance to examine.

“The place looks great! Lunch smells fantastic,” Nia grinned, giving Lena a quick hug before going to say hello to Alex and Eliza.

“Thank you for allowing Nia and I to accompany you on your day of family and other such holiday festivities,” he said with restrained politeness. Brainy had a tendency to over explain every situation, Lena was expecting for him to elaborate on the history of Christmas and its traditions, instead he stroked Gwen with a smile of content.

“You guys are my family. I can only imagine how big next years will be,” Kara beamed, hoping that Clark, Lois and their baby would be joining them.

“Is this apartment is going to be big enough for three additional people and whatever number of animals you have?” Nia was one the floor rubbing Arthurs belly. She was his third favorite person in the entire world, behind Kara and Lena of course,”Because you should really get a giant fluffy dog next.”

“Oh god,” Lena groaned, rolling her eyes as Arthur plopped down his entire body right on Nia's lap. “I don't know if I can handle another dog.” But as Lena said it, she knew that Kara would bring home another dog someday and she would just have to accept it.

“You were the one that brought home not one, but two kittens,” Alex said, rolling a paper ball across the floor for Lance to chase.

“Technicalities,” Lena shrugged, putting a platter of vegetables on the island. Kara had been up all morning cooking and reheating some food she had made the night before, making sure that there was a variety for everyone.

“If everyone is ready,” Kara placed the final bowl down. Each of the platters were pushed back towards the middle so that Arthur could not reach,”Christmas meal is served.”

Each person settled in their seats, Eliza and Alex on the opposite ends of the tablet. Lena and Kara sat so close together that their shoulders touched, Nia and Brainy on the other side. Their body postures were both tense, although Brainy definitely showed his nerves, sitting almost on edge of his seat to avoid bumping into Nia. She, on the other hand, kept glancing at him and grew more and more flustered the most he edged away.

Looking at the two opposing aliens, she realized with a shock that they were remarkably similar to Kara and herself as their feelings towards each other progressed. Lena tried to box away those emotions and even resorted to distancing herself as Kara tried to do the exact opposite, constantly dragging her into unwanted hugs and quick little touches. She was eager to see what bloomed from their relationship in the future.

Fiddling with her ring, she felt reassured that no matter how difficult it has been balancing their lives, there would always be time for each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm taking a couple week break from Supercorp, jumping shows to write a Zarlie fic (Charlie x Zari from Legends) but bare with me, I have some things planned.  
> any who  
> i hope you enjoyed this more than I do.


	4. a night to remember

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the (day after) their four year anniversary, Lena does something that takes their relationship to the next step

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow it's been awhile since i've updated this one! I'll keep updating this as time goes on, I've a couple ideas for future additions.  
> ik it's short but i think it's sweet and simple (also I'm focused on the crossover fic atm)
> 
> happy femslash february? if anyone has anything specific they want to see (specifically for avalance, supercorp and zarlie) than drop it in the comments bellow bc I've hit a writers block

Two women walked arm and arm underneath the shining moonlight through the barren streets of National City. Trotting several feet ahead was a bulky white mastiff pitbull mix, completely unaware that it was freezing. He acted like it was normal to be going on a walk at two in the morning. 

Just hours before was their four year anniversary which Kara had spent the evening saving the city from the latest crisis. Lena’s stress levels were already off the chart before Kara had to take off for some DEO emergency because of something she had been planning for awhile now. 

It didn't bother Lena at all when Kara had to run off to her duties, it was simply a fact of life now. She certainly learned to trust the police and DEO to handle smaller incidents over time so that Kara could spend more time enjoying her human life. Lena still worried, because what powerless girlfriend wouldn't?

During those lonely nights Lena was all the more grateful that she had Arthur and the cats since they great comfort, but there were some nights where she just wanted Kara to be there. Terribly stressful days at work where she needed her wonderfully positive girlfriend to just be there when she was otherwise occupied. Not that Lena could blame her, it’s just some days were worse than others and it was really hard having a superhero for a girlfriend.

Their scattered time made Lena cherish these quiet moments even more, a simple late night walk was all she needed. That and she may or may not have something else planned that was supposed to be done for their anniversary night. She did not want to postpone her plans any further, so it she was just going to have to be impractical and spontaneous. 

“Alex was so surprised that you let me help,” Kara said, glancing Lena with wide apologetic eyes,”She is very grateful though.” 

“I know she wouldn’t have asked if it wasn’t important. A fire at an alien church isn’t something to be taken lightly,” Lena smiled softly, tucking a stray strand of blond out away behind her ear,”You are just doing your job. I told you to stop apologizing for saving people since the day you told me about Supergirl.”

“Still, it was our anniversary. Four years…” Kara trailed off. So much had happened since they started dating; particularly getting pets and living together in general. “When I met you I could never have imagined that we’d be living together with furry children.”

“And now I can’t imagine my life without you,” Lena said as they turned the street corner. Arthur was happy enough, tail wagging a million miles an hour with his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. The few people out at this hour were drunk off their asses and stumbling blindly through the street,”Over four years of trials and tests, of lonely nights for the both of us. But we made it, against all odds. It's only an additional benefit that we were able to prove Alex and Lillian wrong,” she added with a slight smile at the thought of the look of horror on her mother’s face when she found out her disowned daughter was dating the Girl of Steel. 

“The look on Alex’s face when we kissed during that game night was hilarious,” Kara giggled, her cheeks flushed with red from both memory and the numbing cold,”Utterly confused and worried, you really threw her for a loop.”

“I got excited! We won! All that prepping paid off,” Lena bolstered, still proud of herself for all those hours spent practicing countless trivia board games. After all, it was basic memorization and strategy, knowing her opponents was just as important. 

“I remember very well. Alex than insisted on playing Uno and we all know how that ended,” she sighed lightly, her warm breath stirring the frosted air into a cloud. 

“What? She wanted a strategic game to make sure I wasn’t cheating. I will not apologize for what happened,” Lena shrugged, heart-rate skyrocketing as the L-Corp building faintly appeared in the distance. From here, she could tell at least a dozen lights on still. She made a mental note to figure out whom they were to give them some paid time off.

“I still find Uno cards at the most random places,” Kara pointed out with another adorable laugh. That cute, soft laugh; the way her eyes sparkled with joy in the pale moonlight was all she needed. Hell, it was all she wanted. L-Corp was her life for so long, until a perky little blond cracked her reserved shell that Lena worked so hard to maintain. 

“Well she would vetoed Twister pretty damn quickly. Uno is banned. You pick the game next time time because Alex and I are incapable of playing nice,” she pointed out. Lena’s mind was reeling with ideas of how to get Kara inside without raising suspicion,”She never likes what I suggest.”

“Can you really blame her? Strip poker? Really?” Kara said, resting her head on Lena’s shoulder. Despite being bundled in layers of coats, it was this simple action that flooded her skin with warmth,“I love my two competitive girls but game night is chaotic and, well, insane.”

“I still think stripe poker is a good idea,,” she huffed, shoving her hands in her pockets. It took Lena until they were feet away from the entrance before she realized that she didn’t need to overthink anything. “What do you say to getting warm?”

“Oh! Hot chocolate? Please?” Kara perked up immediately like a four year old on Christmas Eve. The quickest way to her heart was food and sweets and a suitable distraction so that Lena could prepared.

“Of course. But no caffeine. I really can’t handle you crashing through the walls at 2am, it’s not the easiest to explain to the employees,” Lena reminded her, rolling her eyes as Kara stuck out her bottom lip in protest. The one time she let the Kryptonian have coffee this early in the morning, the upstairs offices were a complete mess with papers scattered everywhere as if a tornado tore through.

“Nope. I’m sticking to that decision,” she said, shaking her head. For once Lena was going to remain strict on her word because it would probably be the last time she would ever be able to say no.

“Fine…” Kara grumbled, holding the door open for Lena to walk through with Arthur. The second her foot pasted the threshold, warm air hit her with a gust. 

“Good morning Miss Luthor, Miss Danvers. Pleasure to see you both,” the head night guard said, his eyes remaining on the book in his lap. Judging by his tone, the guard was clearly not surprised to see them there so late.

“‘Gerald. I hope you have been keeping warm,” Lena greeted him with a smile. She had gotten to know him very well during her many endless work nights throughout her years as the L-Corp CEO.

“Of course,” he replied, smiling from underneath the basic cap. 

“How are Justin and the kids?” Kara asked. Arthur sniffed at Gerald’s pockets as if he was certain there was a treat hiding specifically for him. From under the table, she could see the burly man slip him a piece of jerky. 

“Good, we spent the weekend at the zoo. Thank you, Lena for the passes,” he actually looked up from his book to look her in the eye. “Jessie was very thrilled to have front row seats to the tiger feeding.”

“Well that’s good to hear. It was the least I could do,” Lena shrugged, making her way to the private elevator that lead to her office.

“You didn’t tell me you did that for Gerald and his family! So nice of you,” Kara said, unable to hide the surprise in her voice. 

“He deserves it,” Lena replied nonchalantly, pressing the button that directed the elevator up. Arthur was so used to this ride that he sat down right at Lena’s side and patiently waited for the doors to open. The lift jerked forwards at first before gliding effortlessly up nearly twenty stories before it slowed to a stop on the top level. 

“Hey, I’ll meet you in the penthouse if you want to get your hot chocolate and something to eat,” Lena said as the sleek silver doors slid open. She had to make sure that the office was ready for this big plan of hers that needed to go perfectly. 

“Sure,” Kara nodded eagerly darted off, disappearing around the corner where the kitchen was. It may be in the dark, freezing morning but it was never too early for food; at least for her eternally hungry girlfriend. 

“You can do this,” she murmured to herself, taking a deep breath as she opened the office door. Strings of bright white lights were strung around the office, giving off a soft illuminated glow to the entire room. Candles lined a pathway of rose petals from the door to the balcony, flickering their own yellow glow on the sleek wood floor. Faint music played in the background with Kara’s favorite songs from The Wizard of Oz. 

Arthur sniffed one the candles (the exact reason she got fake ones) before quickly growing bored. He plopped himself down on his specially designed couch, munching on a bone. Lena couldn’t help but smile at the adorable pooch, the dog she didn’t initially want. Now, Lena didn’t even want to think what her life would be like without him. 

Lena had never been so nervous during her entire life, her heart was beating so fast she thought it would fly out of her chest. Despite the air around her being chilly, Lena felt like her skin was on fire. She wasn’t a very romantic person, but she wanted this proposal to be special. While it may be cliche, all that mattered was that it went smoothly. 

Sure, she could have rented out an entire football stadium and planned a giant, over dramatic proposal with synchronized dancing and fireworks. But Lena had feeling that Kara would love a more simpler gesture at the very place they met. Her gaze fell upon the worn down leather couch where they spent countless nights talking about Supergirl stuff and Lena’s struggles. 

It was where Lena looked in Kara’s eyes as she told her that she was her hero, not Supergirl. When those fateful words escaped her lips, that was when Lena Luthor knew she was in love with Kara. Her smile broadened as a barrage of memories invaded her mind, giving her a little bit of reassurance that she was going the right thing. 

She took another deep breath, reassuringly rubbing her thumb across the velvet box in her pocket. Lena could feel herself already getting emotional, but she had to hold herself together at least until she said what needed to be said. The brief monologue she had practiced over and over again across the past couple of months was fresh in her brain after pacing around their apartment for two hours reciting it as the animals watched in confusion.

Hands shaking, Lena carefully walked through the rose petals to the balcony so that she could get a breath of fresh air. Her heart started to slow as she looked over the cityscape. the beautiful lights from the buildings below twinkled in harmony. in her life had she been so nervous, not about any board meeting or when she stood trial against Lillian and Lex. 

“Oh Rao! What is this?” Kara’s surprised gasp caught her attention, causing Lena to turn around. The dancing lights gave her pale complexion a mysterious shadowing but there was no mistaking the joy in her eyes. She gazed around the room, eyes wide with wonder at how different the room was with the fairy lights.

“Did you really think I didn't plan something special?” Lena replied with a smirk. She could feel her throat tighten as Kara shuffled through the trail of petals, even as Lena repeatedly told herself that she was not going to get emotional.

“I expected a nice desert or something to make up for it, but certainly not this…” Kara murmured, stepping out onto the balcony. Her heart was now in her throat as her gaze locked onto her girlfriend’s radiate blue gaze that was already glistening with tears.

“I knew you wouldn't want this,” Lena made a twirling gesture with her hand,”to be a giant deal. So much of our relationship is public, especially a reporter working for her boss that happens to be a Luthor. I wanted to do something more private, more personal.”

“Lee? What are you doing?” Her voice sharpened as Lena took a knee.

“Something I never thought I would do. I never thought that someone like me would find love, let alone someone as amazing as you. Kara Danvers, you are the love of my life. We’ve been through hell and back together more than once and I want to spend our future building a life for ourselves. You’ve helped so many people, maybe it’s time you let yourself start a new chapter in your life,” Lena said, opening up the silver velvet box. The ring was a dark sapphire with a flower design, lined with small diamonds on the petals. “With me.”

“Oh Rao! I-yeah, uh- Of course. Yes!” Kara slid the ring on the middle finger on her left hand. She proceed to tackle Lena to the ground with a deep kiss, wrapping her arms around Lena’s neck. Relief washed over her as their lips met, sweeping away any fear she had that Kara would say no. 

“I know you didn’t want a super fancy ring, so I picked out a moderately priced ring and donated the difference between what I would have gotten you to the animal shelter,” Lena said quietly when they separate for air. 

“I don’t even want to know how much,” She chuckled lightly, examining the ring in the moonlight. “It’s perfect though. You could have asked me in the street surrounded by intoxicated fools and I still would have said yes, you know that right?” 

“Of course, but I wanted to do something special,” Lena shrugged, struggling to her feet with most of Kara’s weight still holding her down.

“Honestly, I was going to give you until Valentine’s Day and than I was going to do it myself,” Kara levitated herself up. The light bleeding through the glass windows showed a bright blush on her cheeks as she fixed her crooked glasses. 

“How were you going to do it?” Lena asked as Kara’s hand slid around her waist, pulling her close. She rested her shoulder on the Kryptonians shoulder, leaning most of her weight against her strong girlfriend’s body. 

“I was going with the logic of ‘go big or go home’ so…” Her fiancé delved into her plan to propose which included a scavenger hunt that was spread throughout National City and an urban town called Smallville, somehow ending up on an entirely different planet? Lena listened as Kara rambled on as Kara went into detail, her eyes set on the pale moon above as she realized that she was more than ready to start their life together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sure, i could have named the dog Krypto, but to me that's more of Superman's dog. I wanted Kara to have something different, something separate from HIM (since the SG writers seem to forget Supergirl is NOT Superman)
> 
>  
> 
> also I just finished Merlin when I was writing the first chapter so :X


	5. legacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena and Kara take a VERY big step in their future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> surprise mother fucker, an update y'all never expected

The Talk 

Life was simple and good, Kara was grateful for how peaceful everything had been lately. Of course, there was always some monster of the week attacking, but with Lena and Kara working together; nothing could stop them. They had maintained a surprisingly efficient work/life balance, especially with Lena’s long hours and the fact that Kara rarely had time truly ‘off’.  
Kara’s head rested on Lena’s lap, half asleep as she played with her hair with one hand and propping up a tablet with the other. Hogging up where her pillow should be was Arthur, curled up in a tight ball against Kara’s side. 

She could hear the pitter-patter of the cats tearing through the apartment, crashing into things as they played recklessly. In the past year of owning two cats and one very large dog, Kara and Lena learned very quickly to secure anything remotely fragile or else it was doomed. 

Kara couldn’t help but feel that she was ready for the next step, and since they had mutually decided that they didn’t need a certificate to be happy. She took a deep breath and finally dared to ask Lena a question that had been on her mind for months, “So I’ve been thinking…”

“Oh?” Lena set down her tablet, glancing down at her with curiosity and suspicion in her eyes, “We’re not getting any more animals.”

“No, I’m not pestering you about another pet- at least not right now. I mean, not really, in a sense. No, it’s different, like a big difference compared to Arthur and our crazy cats,” Kara was finding trouble finding a way to naturally introduce the ‘k’ word. 

“Fine, I’ll let you a fish, that’s it,” Lena placed a kiss on her forehead, “Nothing more though.”

“This isn’t about another pet,” Kara said, sitting up from her extremely  
comfortable position to properly look Lena in the eye. “But the next step in our lives.”

“I thought we agreed on not getting married,” Lena’s eyebrows furrowed as she grew worried.

“No, I don’t need a certificate to prove my love to you. But we need to discuss our next step as a couple,” Kara took Lena’s hand and held it close to her heart. “Kids,” she and took the leap, looking deep in her eyes for any sort of reaction.

Lena sighed heavily, a small smile forming in the corner of her mouth, “I thought you were going to convince me to move to Midvale.” 

“Oh no, I know I still have to wear you down a while more to convince you to move out in the middle of nowhere, away from the hustle of city life,” Kara said with a wink; pulling Lena closer so that her head rested on her shoulder. “So, kids? Thoughts?”

“I’ll be honest, we adapted a lot better than I expected with Arthur since he is always with one of us at all times. The apartment is already childproofed thanks to Gwen and Lance, I don’t think we even own anything breakable anymore. We have Alex and everyone else to help out take care of them in case of an emergency…” Lena hummed in consideration, “I think we can handle it, I genuinely do. I think the biggest question is going to be how.”

“This conversation went drastically easier than I expected,” Kara giggled as she wrapped her arms around Lena’s waist, “I thought I’d have to convince you more that we’re ready.”

“Truth be told, I’ve been thinking about it too. I assumed it was coming eventually, you’ve been very distracted by babies lately,” Lena added with a broad smile. “I also gave a lot of thought about how to get one.”

“Babies aren’t just like puppies,” Kara pointed out, fighting hard not to giggle again, “Just can’t pick one off the street you know. Do I need to explain human procreation to you?”

Lena rolled her eyes and replied with a smirk, “No, I know how babies are made. Science has come a very long way in terms of medically impregnating women with DNA from the parents, but I’m not sure how well that’s going to work…”

“With my Kryptonian body,” Kara finished with dismay, “Even if we do get sperm-”

“Ugh, gross,” Lena interjected like a young teenager being taught about sex.

“Donor, and you’d be stuck pregnant for 9 months. I wouldn’t force anybody into that situation, no matter how much we want a kid of our own,” Kara finished off, knowing that Lena would probably not like to be pregnant due to her extremely stressful job.

“That’s not really an issue that I’m worried about. Do you need a child of your blood? Of our blood?” Lena’s tone was heavy with apprehension. 

“I think it would be nice to have a little bit of each of us in a kid. If Clark and Lois can do it, why can’t we?” Kara blinked, her judgment clouded in her naive want.

“That would be an unbelievably powerful kid, with the brains of a Luthor and brawn of a Super. And it would have the added benefit of infuriating Lillian and Lex, and I’m more than positive that I could figure something to make something of us. But is it necessary? We’re more than the DNA that makes us special, it should be us as parents that make the child ours, not its genetic   
make-up,” her voice was hopeful and heavy with hinting about whatever she was getting at. 

“Adoption, that’s what you’re suggesting?” Kara asked to confirm, although she wasn’t sure else what else Lena could be getting at.

“Yes,” she nodded enthusiastically, “We’re more than capable to adopt, who is going to say no to the corporate head of a massive company and her hard-hitting reporter partner?” 

“I doubt too many agencies, the only excuse to deny us would be homophobia,” Kara agreed wholeheartedly, “And we aren’t limited to a baby, but any age.”

“That’s true, besides, if we do well with one then we can always adopt again. Plus, who knows? Maybe a kid will help encourage me to get someplace bigger,” Lena added with a wink. 

“So does that mean?” Kara kissed Lena’s neck, smiling as she breathed a satisfied sigh. 

“Yes, we can start applying to adoption agencies,” Lena confirmed, moving her face so that she could kiss Kara on the lips. 

“Mhmm,” Kara hummed against her lips, eager and scared for their foreseeable future. 

 

\-------------- You and I, and our Legacy -------------------

 

Inside a hotel at Star City, Lena paced back and forth, heart pounding against her chest. She was terrified, her hands were clammy and she was so anxious she felt sick to her stomach. 

“Lena, love, calm down. We’ve got this,” even her partner’s voice didn’t sound confident, she was just as scared. 

“Very reassuring,” Lena shuddered. She took a couple of sips of water, hoping that it would help quell the bubbles in her stomach.

“We’ve prepared for this. We’ve taken every class and read every book, we can’t do anything else to prepare for this,” Kara reminded her, getting up from her spot on the bed. She came up from behind Lena, wrapping her arms around her waist and laid her head on her shoulder.

“There isn’t anything else to do?” Lena asked, running through her mental checklist again. They had the seat secured in the car, Alex was taking care of Arthur for the first couple weeks, the room was furnished and very well stocked with every single possible item needed to take care of a baby. 

“Lena, we’re going to be okay. We’ve got this, right? Eliza is on stand-bye, the apartment is prepared. The only way to learn how to take care of a child is to take care of a child,” Kara hummed. “Besides, we’ve faced monsters and aliens, your family. World destruction, things that no other normal human has. We’re stronger together, and besides, at least our child won’t be like   
Clark’s.”

And for that, Lena was beyond grateful. She couldn’t imagine trying to take care of a super-powered child, although the next family gathering was going to be interesting since Conner was in his terrible twos. 

“We made the best decision, even if it took longer than expected,” Kara agreed as she kissed Lena’s cheek. “It gave us time to prepare, for me to train Nia some more.”

“And for me to get L-Corp situated. It’s hard telling a room of men that I’m stepping forward in my life as a mother but my involvement in the company won’t be taken a step back,” she shrugged, leaning back into Kara’s embrace. 

“Ha! I can imagine the look on their faces!” Kara giggled in her ear, “But nothing can beat Alex’s face when we told her we got accepted, she was shocked, to say the least.”

“Kara, this is all I’ve ever wanted, hell, I never saw myself having a nuclear life. Guess it took a spectacular woman to show me that I could have it all,” she had said this before, but felt like now was the best time to say it again.

“Hey, it takes two to tango,” Kara moved in front of Lena, taking her hands and holding them. “This is going to be a brave new venture that neither of us has ever experienced before and I for one am excited. Nervous, but excited.”

“Can you hear how far along?” Lena asked, she hated asking Kara to use her powers but the wait was slowly killing her. 

She nodded and grew distant for a second, a posture she had figured out when they first started dating. “The horrifying screams… Horrible,” her frown quickly transformed into a delighted smile, “and… they’re out.”

“Oh thank god,” Lena breathed a sigh of relief as she jumped into Kara’s arms for a hug. She could feel the happy tears coming but forced them aside because she knew that if she started to cry than Kara would soon follow.

“We better get over there before we both lose it,” Kara’s hands were firm against her, reassuring her that everything would be okay. “We will do this, we are completely capable of doing this.”

“We can,” Lena murmured as Kara led her out of the hotel. 

 

They had to wait another hour as the baby was cleaned and given its shots. Lena and Kara had met with the woman several times before as interviews and several ‘getting to know the potential parents’ lunches. She looked dreadfully tired and exhausted but perked up when they walked into the room with flowers. 

“Kara, Lena, it’s great to see you,” she mumbled, completely drained of all energy. 

“We wanted to say thank you,” Kara smiled at her, placing the flowers on the little dresser next to her. Of course, being the mother of Lena Luthor’s child had benefits, like a comfortable recovery room and top-notch medical care. None of that could help with the actual physical pain and stress the birthing process put the body through.

“It’s the least I can do it, I know my child is going to the best possible people,” she said with exhaustion in her voice. 

“We promise that we’re going to do our best to raise them,” Lena added with a genuine smile. 

“I know. Now go, meet your baby,” she leaned back against the plush pillows.

Lena glanced at Kara, waiting for her to make the first move. She was still apprehensive and timid, afraid to make the wrong move. Lena was used to being in control, she knew what the next day would bring. When they walked through that door to their kid, everything would change. There was no going back, not that she wanted to, it was just horrifying to not know. However, looking at the love and confidence in Kara’s eyes only reassured Lena that things were going to be okay.

“Ready?” Kara whispered, probably listening now to her increased heart rate. 

Lena simply nodded, knowing that if she spoke then it was pretty much guaranteed that she would cry. 

“Okay, let’s go,” she murmured with an arm secured around Lena’s waist. 

They were led to a secluded waiting room, away from the chaotic bustle of the hospital. A doctor was briefing Lena and Kara about the child’s weight and overall health, which was immaculate. 

All of Lena’s worries melted away the second the nurse walked into the room holding a baby in a soft yellow blanket. She felt a new burst of energy that would (hopefully) last the next 18 years as she and the woman she loved crossed that five feet to their new bundle of joy.

“Are you ready to hear the sex?” The doctor asked from behind, although Lena didn’t care what the sex was. Regardless, with Lena’s intelligence and Kara’s heart, this kid was golden. 

“Yes,” Kara said, although she didn’t care either. They had already decided on a name, regardless of the sex.

“It’s a girl,” he said, pausing as if expecting some sort of extreme response from them. 

Kara and Lena looked at each other for a split second, joy flooded through her. A boy would have been just as fine, but a girl   
was also great. Neither women had a preference. 

“Would you like to hold her?” The nurse asked, offering the kid to Lena. 

Hesitantly, she accepted the baby, only with Kara standing right next to her, an arm also underneath the bundle to reassure Lena that she was there too. 

“And her name?” The doctor asked gently, “If you don’t have one yet, then-”

Simultaneously, Lena and Kara responded, “Legacy.” After hours upon hours of considering names that were both Earthly and Kryptonian, but Legacy just had so much undeniable meaning to both of them… How could they not? 

Even the nurse seemed surprised by their response but said nothing as she left the room to retrieve a couple of papers. 

“That is a unique name for a unique child,” he said, genuinely interested by their choice. 

“Legacy Luthor,” Kara said again, reaffirming aloud. It still didn’t feel real, looking down at this pale baby with its bright blue eyes and patch of blondish brown hair.

Of course, Lena protested the use of her infamous last name to mark their child, but Kara insisted that it would bring honor and a newfound meaning to Luthor name that Lena fought so hard to redeem. 

This child was a true start to a brand new chapter of their life together, one that started that very day Kara dragged her to that lonely chain-link cage where a pathetic horse of a dog laid, awaiting his death. If it wasn’t for Arthur, then Lena may not have known that she was capable of raising a family. 

Lena smiled as Kara kissed her cheek and then Legacy’s little nose. She loved everything about the little babe in her hand and the possibilities she held. Lena’s throat tightened as her little hand grasps her finger, surprisingly tightly for such a little thing. 

This moment was picture perfect, a memory Lena would treasure no matter how hard life will get.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may add more, I may not. I have a couple ideas, but who knows? Maybe I'll come back in two months or four to this. I do want to try adding onto older fics I abandoned but no promises, this was the first step.

**Author's Note:**

> I will probably update this whenever I get ideas; like them taking Arthur on a trip to the park or hiking, maybe a Christmas edition? I dunno. That way those of you who like fluff rather than longer story/character driven works like Girl in the Glass or Love is Blind can have your fluff fix <3


End file.
